A Jedi is not his blade, nor his power. He is his presence.
The hangar bay aboard the Resolute echoed with the bustle of loading troopers and starfighter techs, the clamor of war preparation never fully subsiding. Jason Shan stood at the edge of the platform beside Anakin and Ahsoka, his arms crossed, his cloak fluttering in the warm updrafts from below.
"Another battle," Jason said, gazing at the readouts from the forward outpost. "Another separatist offensive. Another reason I should've taken up temple gardening."
"You'd hate gardening," Ahsoka smirked beside him. "Way too quiet."
"And far too peaceful," Obi-Wan added as he approached, his expression unreadable but the arch of his brow amused. "Besides, you're being reassigned."
Jason turned. "Reassigned?"
"To a forward Jedi battalion," Obi-Wan confirmed. "Master Aayla Secura's fleet is under siege in the Quell system. You're joining Anakin and Ahsoka to reinforce her line. A Republic medical station nearby is vulnerable—Secura needs backup before she can evacuate her wounded."
"Always the fun jobs," Jason muttered. "Let me guess. No backup, low odds, and massive enemy presence?"
Ahsoka grinned. "You're learning."
Anakin gave a brief nod. "We'll take the Resolute into orbit and deploy from there. Pack light—we'll be fast and hard."
Jason stepped toward the gunship prepping for launch. "No other way I know."
[Hours Later – Quell System]
The battle above Quell raged like an open wound in space. Separatist warships laid down a relentless barrage against the fleet of Jedi Master Aayla Secura, her Twi'lek cruiser surrounded and taking damage fast.
Inside the main hangar of the Resolute, Jason moved with urgency, briefing clone officers and calibrating nav charts. Across the hangar, Ahsoka slipped into her fighter while Anakin paced between consoles, his eyes set firmly on the battlefield ahead.
Jason turned toward the open hangar blast doors, where space flashed with ion bursts.
"We're approaching visual range of Aayla's fleet," the clone helmsman reported over the comm. "One main cruiser holding position. Shields buckling."
Jason stepped beside Anakin at the forward viewport. "They won't last much longer. We need to land fast."
Anakin nodded. "We'll come in hot. Skywalker style."
"I'll pretend that's reassuring," Jason muttered, already shifting toward the drop bay.
[Aayla Secura's Flagship – Under Siege]
Within the shaking corridors of the dying Republic cruiser, Jedi Master Aayla Secura deflected blaster bolts with smooth, flawless arcs. Her blue lightsaber moved like water. Clone troopers under her command struggled to hold the line as the outer hull splintered from turbolaser fire.
"Fall back to the core hangar!" she shouted. "Prepare for extraction!"
One clone—Commander Bly—spoke into his wrist comm. "Jedi reinforcements are on approach. Three Jedi incoming."
Aayla's lekku twitched slightly. "Then we need to survive long enough to meet them."
[Jedi Drop Ship – En Route to Aayla's Cruiser]
As the drop ship tore through enemy fire, Jason closed his eyes. In the pressurized quiet of the gunship, blaster bolts lancing past the viewports, he let go.
Let the battle go.
Let the nerves go.
He reached into the Force.
And extended outward.
Like roots through soil, he touched the minds of the clone pilots flying alongside. He touched Ahsoka's focused adrenaline, Anakin's barely restrained fury, the defensive perimeter of Aayla's troops below. He didn't push them. He didn't command.
He harmonized.
For a moment, the pulses of the battle aligned.
One breath. One rhythm.
One force.
Anakin's voice pulled him out. "We're breaching her hanger!"
The ship rocked, alarms flashing. They were hit.
[Hangar – Aayla's Cruiser]
The Jedi hit the deck running. Jason rolled to his feet as the drop ship crashed and skidded into cover behind a row of burning wreckage.
He rose beside Anakin, lightsaber igniting in a brilliant streak of violet.
Across the deck, Aayla turned and met them mid-charge, deflecting droid fire. "Good timing."
"Could've been better," Jason muttered, slicing through two advancing B1s. "But we like drama."
Ahsoka leapt beside Bly, covering the right flank. Anakin and Aayla fought side by side, blades a whirlwind of defense and offense. Jason flanked left, leading a group of clones toward the engine corridor to secure the escape route.
"Push them back!" he called. "We need the core corridor cleared for evac!"
Blasters blazed around him. Jason ducked under a super battle droid's arm and sliced upward through its chassis. His breathing synced with the Force—Battle Meditation flowing through him, subtly, keeping the soldiers around him focused and fearless.
And then the hull buckled.
[Explosion – Anakin Injured]
The main power conduit burst as Separatist fire pierced the outer layer. The explosion ripped through the hangar deck—flinging bodies, droids, and debris into the air.
Jason hit the floor hard, knocked back into a support pillar.
He groaned, rolled—looked up in time to see Anakin covering the clone ship's ramp.
"Everyone inside!" Anakin shouted. "Go! I'll hold the explosion!"
"No!" Jason shouted, scrambling up.
Too late.
Anakin reached out with the Force, holding the pressure wave at bay, preventing it from reaching the clones—and collapsed as the surge overtook him.
Ahsoka screamed. "Master!"
Jason ran to his side, deflecting falling debris. Aayla arrived seconds later, already checking his vitals.
"He's alive," she said, eyes tense. "But unconscious."
Jason nodded quickly. "We're getting out. Now."
They lifted him onto the ramp.
[Escape – Hyperdrive Sabotaged]
The ship roared out of the exploding cruiser, engines strained. Bly and his remaining troopers patched in wounded clones, while Jason stood beside the helm where Aayla guided them toward open space.
Ahsoka watched over Anakin, eyes wide and worried.
Jason knelt beside her. "He's strong. He'll pull through."
Ahsoka looked up. "He saved everyone. But now what?"
Jason turned toward the viewport—and froze.
Turbolaser fire lanced across space—and a final blast struck the ship's hyperdrive.
A sudden jolt.
"Hyperdrive is offline!" the clone co-pilot called. "We've lost control!"
Jason grabbed onto the bulkhead. "Hold on!"
The ship lurched, systems overloading—and was sucked into hyperspace uncontrolled, destination unknown.
[Bridge – Brief Calm in Chaos]
They didn't know how far they'd gone.
The ship drifted, lights flickering. Systems offline. They had no star chart readings. No comms. No nav beacon.
Anakin remained unconscious.
Jason stood at the viewport, jaw clenched. Ahsoka leaned over the nav console, trying to make sense of the data.
Aayla moved to Jason's side. "This wasn't your fault."
Jason didn't look away from the stars. "I know."
But the edge in his voice said he still felt it.
Aayla rested a hand on his shoulder. "Then trust that the Force will carry us the rest of the way."
He nodded slowly.
"…We're not dead yet."